Pretty Fantastic: Lex + Dave, a Match Made in Heaven

Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match... how often have you ignored your friend's suggestions that you meet this guy or that girl who would be perrrrfect for you? I'm quite sure some of you finally relented (to varying degrees of success) but today's real wedding proves that some people are just natural born matchmakers - Lex and Dave might have ignored their pal's advice for months, but in the end he had the last laugh - at their unbelievably gorgeous wedding. Let's all raise a toast to Durham so while enjoying a sneaky peeky at Lex and Dave's phenomenal wedding (complete with home brewed beers!) More massive party than a formal celebration, this is one wedding that will bring a smile to your face and a lot more pins to your pinterest account! The entire colourful real wedding was captured with style by Lara Hotz and we're delighted to share it with you today...

This fun loving pair first met at work, although little did they know they already very nearly had a date. Lex explains..."Dave and I had both moved to London from opposite sides of Australia and were working at a private members bar, Milk and Honey, when we first met. The first night Dave started I thought he was pretty cute and called the main bar to get the dish on the new guy. They referred me to his best friend Durham, another bartender I had been working with for a few months prior. So I immediately called the bar upstairs "Durham, your mate is hot! " to which he replied "Lex, I tried to set you up with him months ago! Remember when I told you I had a single mate friend that you would get along with?" So it all came back to me and I felt silly for not taking his suggestion so seriously. Moral of the story is when someone says they know someone you might like, follow that lead! Dave and I could have had 3 months of extra bliss together."

Years of bliss later and Dave surprised Lex with an extra special gift... "We went out for dinner with friends on a Thursday night and came home to a present sitting on the table (not out of the ordinary as we often give little gifts). Of course I got out the phone and started snapping away for Instagram, at this point Dave was starting to get a bit nervous asking me if I was actually going to open the present. So I tore into it and it was a special edition book of the first gift that Dave had given me when we met in London. Queue more photos for instagram, I open the first page have a quick squiz and continue to take photos. Dave getting really antsy now. "Aren't you going to look inside, it has new characters and everything" I open the book properly this time to find that he had glued all the pages together and perfectly cut a hole out of the centre to fit the ring in. Below the ring was written "will you be my superhero" - the book is an unconventional love story entitled All My Friends are Superheros."

For their wedding Lex and Dave wanted to stay true to themselves with a fun, tongue-in-cheek day with lots of humour and sentimental details wrapped up in one glorious celebration.

The colourful outdoor ceremony was held at Centennial park where Lex and Dave used to run together, and which is right across the road from where they used to live. Lex explains: "Dave is a country boy and really wanted to be wed amongst the trees. I too loved the informal setting and especially liked the idea of walking across the road to get married."

The heartfelt ceremony was decorated with cute DIY coloured love heart sticks lining the aisle and lots of confetti packs which guests used in abundance...

After a heavy shower of confetti Lex and Dave treated guests to cocktails in glass milk bottles, whilst they nipped away for some colourful portraits in fun locations with photographer Lara Hotz.

Location number one was Lex and Dave's striking red retro bus followed by the wonderful Higher Ground art installation by Irish artist Maser...

Embracing the infamous colourful art of Maser, Lex and Dave danced and played in the installation making for some pretty epic and totally unique wedding portraits. Gorgeous, and so perfectly suited to them.

For Lex and Dave their wedding was all about choosing their favourite things and throwing a party that was very much a Lex and Dave type party. Lex explains..."Throughout the wedding planning we kept our decision making clear without being clouded by too many options. When we found what we liked, we went with it, the result was a day that truly reflected us, our personalities and the things we love."

To find a venue that was their style Lex and Dave simply did a bit of Googling, and went with their first find - the amazing Studio Neon. They say: "A quick Google search title "alternative wedding locations" led us to this gem, one visit and we signed on. It was eclectic, malleable, colourful and fun."

The eclectic Studio Neon was decorated with peanut M&M wedding favours and DIY décor which was crafted at Lex's craft hen party., as they explain: "Thanks to the help of some lovely ladies we boshed out; the aisle hearts, bonbonniere, bunting, garlands, vases (and cheeky pick up tags). In our spare time we made confetti bags, table décor, "guest book" polaroid washing line, chair tags and winners ribbons for the MOB, GOB, FOB, MOB."

Family also got crafty with Lex's grandma making spinach pies and her dad making rice pudding for the reception - Dave's brother, and best man, Isaac even brewed 70 craft beers for the occasion. Lex tells us: "The best man, took on the huge task of brewing 70 craft beers, which we branded 'The Best Man Brew'. Dave selected and ordered all of the wine. DIY and BYO how's that for hands on."

Last but not least is Lex and Dave's adorable cake toppers which sat on traditional Australian lamingtons. "Our favourite detail from the day was the Smurf cake toppers. We bought these on a 4 day trip to NYC after being together for a mere 2 months. When selecting these souvenirs we both stopped, looked at each other, and chose smurfette in the wedding dress over her in rollerblades. This says it all for us, we were sold from the start."

For their honeymoon Lex and Dave spent a week of luxury in Fiji at the private island resort of Royal Davui. Huge congratulations to you both and thanks so much for sharing your gorgeous wedding day with us all. A big thank you also goes to the wonderful Lara Hotz. To see more from Lara head over to www.larahotz.com